Thursday, November 17, 2016

Bell and Kansas Robbery

Super, you say. Missouri second-degree robbery is not a crime of violence. But my client was convicted of Kansas robbery. Lot of help this blog is.

Well, friend, take heart. The parallels between the Kansas and Missouri robbery statutes are impressive. According to Bell, Missouri robbery is not a crime of violence because “in Missouri a defendant can be convicted of second-degree robbery when he has physical contact with a victim but does not necessarily cause physical pain or injury.” The same is true in Kansas.

Your bellwether case is State v. McKinney. The defendant was convicted of robbery. The victim testified that the defendant pushed her as he grabbed her purse. The defendant testified that he grabbed her purse, but did not shove her. The Kansas Supreme Court held that merely grabbing the victim’s purse, causing physical contact with her arm, sustained a robbery conviction. Same as Bell. Not a crime of violence.